A House That I Am Renting Is Not Up to the Building Code

A house that you are renting that is not up to the building code is the responsibility of the landlord. Find out about a house that you are renting that is not up to the building code with help from an expert attorney in the real estate industry in this free video clip.

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Hello. I am Robert Howe of the Law Office of Robert Howe, P.C., located in Brooklyn, New York. Today, we're going to be talking about a house I am renting is not up to the building code. Many people have a lackadaisical attitude when renting versus buying but, if you analyze both situations, they are similar. For instance, in both cases, you will be spending a lot of money and a lot of time in the property. When a person decides to buy a house, they do a lot of investigation but, when a person decides to rent, the only questions usually are how much is the rent and how am I getting a lease. Very elementary questions like, "Are you the owner?" "Are there any violations?" "Are there any lawsuits?" are never asked. Tenants take a very passive attitude toward the landlord in an effort to please and get the apartment. With so much information online, it's a good idea for the tenant to check if there are any violations against the property. If there are, they should be dealt with before signing the lease. If the violations go on after you're living there, you should talk to the landlord about remedying them. If the landlord refuses, the tenant should no attempt to fix the violations themselves, rather, they should contact the local government department who may fine the landlord or may make the repairs and then charge the landlord. As a last resort, the tenant sometimes withholds the rent until the landlord takes them to court and the matter will be resolved before a judge. As a final note, building codes are constantly being updated. The updated codes may not apply to buildings built before the change or may apply to different size buildings. So, as to code changes, your building may not be required to keep up with the changes. We've just been talking about a house I am renting is not up to the building code. I am Robert Howe of the Law Office of Robert Howe, P.C., located in Brooklyn, New York.